POTOMAC, MD -- Dinner and paying for a hotel stay? What sounds like a normal outing was actually a frightening day for 80-year-old woman from Potomac.
On a Sunday in October, 39-year-old Robert Dove knocked on a door on Stable Way, claiming he was there to inspect the roof. Skeptical, the 80-year-old resident of the home started to question Dove. He shoved the woman, entered the home, produced a knife and demanded jewelry and money.
After receiving cash and jewelry, police say Dove wanted the woman to drive him to an ATM to get more money. The woman began talking to Dove. He told her his name and that he had left a pre-release program and would be wanted by police.
The 80-year-old woman suggested that the two of them take a drive in her car. Once in the car, Dove asked the woman to drive him to a farm in Poolesville, because he wanted to show her where he used to hunt.
After driving to the farm, Dove said he was hungry. To be around other people, the woman suggested they grab something to eat in Poolesville. The two finished a meal at a restaurant where Dove knew several other customers and referred to the woman as his "friend."
Once they finished eating, Dove suggested the two return to the woman's home in Potomac. Fearful of Dove being at her home, the woman told him she would pay for him to stay at a hotel for three nights. Police say Dove told the woman to go straight home and call him once she got there.
Instead of going home, the woman went to a friend's house where the friend told her to call police. The woman was afraid Dove would hurt her if she called police and she said was hopeful he would turn himself in because she had encouraged him to do so throughout the day.
On Oct. 15, police received a tip that Dove was staying at a hotel in Rockville, Md. Dove was arrested for violating his pre-release agreement. That same day, the 80-year-old woman reported to police about her encounter with Dove.
Dove was charged with home invasion, armed robbery, first-degree assault, and kidnapping.
